Shopping Baskets and Front End Items

Shopping Baskets and Front End Items

There are so many little things a food store needs to operate, far beyond the great big shelves, refrigerators, and other large items necessary to display inventory. These other “tools of the trade” might be considered “accessories”, but they’re certainly must-haves and should be on your list of items to be purchased.

Among those items is the shopping basket. Shopping baskets make a trip around your store easier for your customers, whether they’re searching for just an item or two or for an entire week’s groceries.

Shopping baskets include carts that are perched on wheels, which come in a variety of sizes, styles, and materials, from small carts for quick trips to the store to large carts for big orders.

Shopping Baskets Increase Sales

Grocers should also offer shopping baskets that are carried in hand, usually made of plastic and available in a wide range of colors and styles. These shopping baskets are generally found at the front of the store, near the entrances, and are usually displayed in a stand of some sort in order to keep them off the floor.

These basket stands are often made of either a lightweight chrome or a heavier metal. Many have wheels, making it easier to move the baskets around from place to place.

If you have a deli section in your store – or another section where customers will need to stand on queue for service – you’ll probably need a ticket dispenser and the accessories that go along with it, such as a digital unit that displays the number being served and the remote control units that go with the display. These items help traffic flow smoothly and keep customers happy.

Other essentials for your supermarket or grocery store include bag dispensers that hold plastic bags for items such as produce, bakery products, and other loose inventory. Dispensers can be free-standing or might mount onto shelves or other displays. Bag dispensers will also be needed at the check-out area.

You’ll need multiples of each, the number depending on the size of your store. Dispensers should be easily refillable, saving time for the staff members that are responsible for taking care of that task.

Additional small items needed in the everyday operations of your store might include disinfectant wipes and dispensers, box cutters for your staff, packing tape and dispensers, order dividers or “register closed” signs, first aid kits, safety mats, caution signs or cones, thermometers, trolleys for moving large amounts of inventory, and much more.

Carefully calculate how many of each you’ll need and add a few extras to allow for loss or breakage. Remember that buying some of these items in bulk may save you a considerable amount of money. Again, check with your fit out expert for specifics.